You Are A Brilliant Work Of Art

Good morning. I hope it's nice where you are - it's a beautiful sunny start to the day here. I'm off to walk Maya when I've written this, then I have a top I made yesterday to hem.

When the "Brilliant Work of Art" stamps arrived I thought they'd look good on a Gelli print so I looked through my stash and found this one.

I made it in 2013 during an experimental session when I was making samples for the stencils.

As you can see, some were way more successful than others! I always liked this one though, so I kept it and have been waiting for the right time to use it.

This is what I used to make the Gelli print.

To make it into a card  I stamped in Versamark and heat embossed with white powder. 

I then went around the embossing with a black pen........

...........and added the paint brush to finish it off.

Stamps and Stencils Used

Brilliant Work of Art

Rocky Block

Squiggles

Dotty Wave

Maya! Walkies!

Lynne

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You Complete Me

Hello. I hope you're having a good week. Mine's been very productive. Yesterday I pulled out the shoes and sandals that I had stored in boxes in the bottom of one of my wardrobes. I tried them all on and put them in three rows - one to keep, one to take to the charity shop and one undecided/ask Hubby for a second opinion. On counting them I was shocked to discover that there were 35 pairs! When he came in from work and went upstairs I heard "Where the **** did all these shoes come from?".  He quickly decided that all of my undecided ones should go, so I now I have 10 pairs on the keep pile. Oops! I do have a lot more room in my wardrobe though. Next job is the clothes hanging in it and I will be just as ruthless.

I've had a day off from that today and have had a lovely time watching Barbara's shows on Hochanda. I especially enjoyed the last hour as it was fab to see Barbara on with Leonie again.

Here's the first of the two cards I made for today's shows. I do love a bit of cheese and sometimes it creeps into my card making.

Sorry but I just couldn't help myself!  :) 

I started off by stamping the text in the boxes............

......then I brushed on some Distress Ink to take away the whiteness. I liked how this was defining the pieces so I finished off the edges with Walnut Stain .

I masked off the letterboxes then added the hearts using a stencil and Fired Brick Distress Ink.

It still needed something so I added a bit of sparkle to some of the hearts.

I hadn't left myself much room to stamp the sentiment so I had to type the word "complete" on my computer and print it out. I then used the Letterbox set to stamp the rest of it above and below.

I added a few Walnut Stain stencilled hearts and I separated the "YOU" and stuck it on with Pinflair gel to finish it off.

Products Used

Letterbox Set

A5 Jigsaw Blanks

Hearts stencil from the Basic Backgrounds Set

Thanks for visiting. I'll be back soon with my second card from today.

Lynne

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London, Paris, New York

Hello. It's nice to sit down for a bit after a busy few days. My mother-in-law, father-in-law, sister-in-law and 12 year old nephew all came to stay for the weekend. He soon became Maya's new favourite person and she wouldn't leave him alone. Unfortunately, although they have a dog, he seemed to be allergic to her. I think everyone had fun though.

I was also busy on the crafty front with some Clarity samples to make - Barbara is back on Hochanda this Thursday (25th Feb).  Today was spent finishing them and they're now safely in the post.

This card uses stamps, masks and Angelina Fibres on a printed background.

I stamped out the ballerina and masked her before printing the background.

Then, with the help of the skyline masks, I sponged in the skylines of London, Paris and New York.

I removed the masks and added the lettering.

To finish the ballerina off, I coloured her in with Spectrum Noir pencils and made her a beautiful Angelina Film and Fibres dress.

I love how it looks different colours when you move it in the light.

Stamps and Masks Used

Elegance and Grace Ballerinas

Skylines Masks

Wordpress Letters

Lynne

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Thanks SOW much!

Hello. I have a very important task to do today - Find my narrowest Perfect Layers ruler. I use it on nearly every card I make and feel lost without it. I cleared out my craft room yesterday, as I need to use it as a bedroom this weekend, and when I went to use it on a card last night I couldn't find it anywhere! First thing is to check the bag of rubbish I put in the wheelie bin, then I can at least relax, knowing that it is still in the house................somewhere.

For my second poppy card I thought I'd make a little cornfield scene.

I made my own masks to create the fields. I stamped out the poppies, put some scrap paper on top and then held it up to the window so that I could draw a line where I wanted them to go.

I copied this a couple of times with my printer/scanner and then cut out each section as I worked on it.

To finish it off I added a tiny border with my much loved (and missed) Perfect Layers Ruler.

Stamps Used

Poppies Set

Thanks SOW much! from the Garden Set

Look! Floor! With my Pilates Performer folded up (and in my bedroom) and the gateleg table folded up there's so much room to walk around. It's a shame it can't stay like this.

Must go. Lots to do before my visitors arrive and I need to find that pesky ruler. I hope you have a lovely weekend and that we get to see some of that yellow thing in the sky.

Lynne

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One White Poppy

Hello. I hope you had a good weekend. I've nearly finished reading Marie Kondo's Life-Changing Magic of Tidying and it really is living up to its name. My craft room clear-out has been delayed though as she recommends starting with your clothes (you have less emotional attachment to them). I have done that and it's going well so far. I really like her folding method and it will work well in many areas.

For my poppy card I wanted to avoid the obvious and took inspiration...

...from this photo I took a few years ago. One white poppy next to its red friends. I'd never seen one before and was really pleased to spot it when I was out with Maya.

I started off by drawing the central circle using the framer stencil. I then added the poppies and leaves around the outside, masking off the centre as I did this.

I put the outside of the stencil back in place to work on the scene. A blue Post-it mask kept the ink off the white poppy. 

To finish it off I went around the edge of the scene with Distress Ink and did some faux stitching around the edge.

Stamps and Stencils Used

Poppies

Framer

Tidy socks!

Lynne

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Happy Valentine's Day

 Hello. Today's post is just a bit of fun.

It's my Valentine to you.

The stamps say it all really...........Happy Valentine's Day.

Stamps Used

Wee Folk 1

Meadow Dance

To A Dear Friend

However You Spend It

Birdhouse Garden

Tree - Christmas Miniatures

Heart globe from Poundland. Don't say I never treat you!  :) 

Lynne

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Grasses in a Vase Card

Hello. Before I talk cards I'd just like to thank Jayne for her comment on my craft room clear-out on my last post. I was curious about the book she mentioned, so I looked it up on Amazon (I think it's the one by Marie Kondo) and ended up buying it (Kindle edition obviously as I don't want to add to my clutter!). I've already read the first couple of chapters and she talks a lot of sense. Hopefully by the time I've read the whole book I'l be raring to go.

When we moved here were thought it would be the usual 2 year posting but 7 years later we're still here! This means we've missed out on 3 moving clear-outs. I now know that our moving date will be around May 2017 so I'm starting to think about how much stuff we've accumulated here. This year I want to go through every drawer and cupboard and my craft room clear-out is just the start of that.

 

Anyway, back to cards. I thought I'd blog this one today. It uses the same stencil as my last card but has a very different look - this time I used copper embossing powder for the frame. I hope you can see it but it's a nightmare to photograph.

I didn't want to get any stray Versamark ink through the oval centre so I taped it in place. I could then press the pad through the stencil without having to be careful.

Once I had the copper frame done I started work on the central panel, inking in the vase and oval....

............before adding the grasses.

I just wanted three of this one so I masked off one before I inked it again. Don't forget to remove the tape before you stamp!!!!!!!! 

To finish it off I stamped and embossed part of one of the other grass stamps on the vase.

Stamps and Stencils Used

Picture Framer

Meadow Grasses

Vase

Thanks for reading. I'll be back on Sunday with a special post. 

Lynne

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Spring is Coming!

Hello. I'm having a quick coffee break before I crack on with my day. I think I've come up with a plan for my craft room clear-out - I'm going to start with one cube of my Expedits a day and take it from there. Hopefully that won't be too daunting or boring........

I thought I'd start this month's samples with this card as it is actually looking a bit like this here today. The daffodils aren't here yet but it is lovely and sunny (although still cold). I'm not complaining though, at least it's dry!

I wanted a really vibrant look to the scene so I went heavy on the colour, building it up with a brush and make-up sponge until I was happy.

I used masking tape to try and keep the green and yellow separate. 

I would usually add a mat or two to make it into a card but I don't think it needs anything else. It's a great stencil! 

I hope it's looking beautiful where you are too. It won't be too long now until the daffs are out. Spring is coming!

Stamps, Stencils and Masks Used

Picture Framer

Landscape Masks

Meadow Grasses

Sheep from Twiggy Frame and Farm Animals

Lynne

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February's Claritystamp Samples

Good evening. What a day I've had! I thought I'd start clearing out my craft room this morning and it didn't go very well. I really want to get rid of all the old stuff that I know I'll never use but I feel so overwhelmed by it all. I just don't know where to start.......................so I stopped!

Luckily I've had Barbara Gray's shows to watch on Hochanda. She always cheers me up.

These are the cards I made for the shows. I think I was wishing for good weather as I've done a few sunny scenes. As always, I will blog them all individually throughout the month.

Thanks for visiting. I hope I'll see you again soon.

Lynne

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May All Your Dreams Come True

Hello. My Claritystamp samples are all finished, so I've been catching up with all the boring things that get neglected when I'm having fun creating. Housework or stamping? Such a hard choice. Not!  Don't forget that Barbara is on Hochanda this Sunday (7th Feb) 2pm - 3pm and again at 5pm - 6pm. Barbara also has a One Day Wonder that launches at 8pm. This means that there are shows on Monday too. Exciting!

Today's card is a birthday one that I made last year. 

I was struggling with what to make so I had a look through my photos for inspiration.......

.......and I came across this snow globe that I made for one of my Challenge Blog projects (blogged here). I thought it would make a pretty card, so I set about recreating it.

The inks I used are Adirondack Wild Plum, Citrus and Eggplant. The black ink is Archival.

As the card didn't have the sparkle of the snow globe I added some holographic glitter. You can't have fairies without sparkle.

If only I could wave a magic wand and get my house clean and tidy!

Stamps Used

Fairies

Line Sentiments 1

Birdhouse Garden Set

Christmas Miniatures

Lynne

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Happy 7th Birthday Maya

Hello. It's hard to believe that my little bundle of trouble is 7 today - it's gone so quickly. This means that in dog years she's now older than me. Like me, she's getting a few grey hairs but still doesn't act her age!

You can't have a birthday without a card, so here's the one I made her. I used some of my old HOTP papers with my Clarity stamps.

2009

2016

I hope you have a good week. I'm going to take the birthday girl out for a nice walk and then come back and finish my Clarity samples.

Stamps Used

Best Wishes Sentiments

Wee Folk 1

Wordpress Letters

Lynne

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